


Where do little Gorons come from?

by ellindsey



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Gen, Link (Legend of Zelda) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Post-Game, mostly a theory essay disguised as a story, no actual graphical depiction of smut here, speculative discussion of Goron biology and reproductive methods
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-01-13
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:54:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22246648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellindsey/pseuds/ellindsey
Summary: On a walk to Goron City, Link asks Zelda the one thing he couldn't figure out about the Gorons. A speculative discussion of Goron biology ensues.Also, fireproof elixirs are weird.
Relationships: Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 59





	Where do little Gorons come from?

Two figures walked along an irregular stone path in the foothills of Death Mountain, winding between pools of steaming water. The first rays of dawn crept across the landscape, but the heat radiating from the ground already banished any morning chill. Large red-and-yellow butterflies flapped lazily through the humid, simmering air, as Zelda and Link hiked the long, winding road up to Goron City.

They walked side by side, Zelda holding the Sheikah slate out, flipping back and forth between the map function and the camera screen. The device clicked and beeped as she took pictures of a lizard on a rock, or an insect flying through the air, or an interestingly shaped bit of scenery. Link’s eyes were on the road ahead, looking for any possible threat to the two of them. He knew the path well enough to not need the map, and even if he didn’t, the periodic trail markers made the path clear.

Although she focused on the scenery and wildlife, Zelda couldn’t help but notice that Link had something on his mind. He glanced at her, then back at the road, clearly trying to figure out how to ask something. She knew from past experience that trying to get it out of him would only make him more nervous, and he had to work up the courage himself.

“So, Zelda...” Link began, then trailed off. He avoided meeting her gaze, looking at the ground.

“Yes?” she responded, curious as to what prompted him to break through his typical silence.

“There, ah, was something I’ve been wondering about, and thought you might know, because you’re really smart and probably read every book back in the castle library back when you could...” Link rambled on, before trailing off into silence again.

A few more moments of silent walking followed, during which time Link still didn’t complete his query. “Whatever it is, you can ask it of me, Link. It’s fine.” Zelda prodded him.

“How do Gorons have kids?” he blurted out. Zelda blinked in surprise. Whatever question she expected, that wasn’t it. 

“Oh, Link, do we need to have _the talk_?” she asked, laughing.

Link rolled his eyes. “I know how it works for Hylians, _obviously_.” he responded, sounding a bit hurt. “And for Gerudo, and Zora, and I’m pretty sure I know how Rito do it. But I’ve been all over Goron City, and I think I’ve talked to everybody there, and I didn’t meet a single Goron woman, and I’ve never heard any Goron talk about their mother, it’s always their father and grandfather and everything, and it doesn’t make sense, and I thought you might know.” The words came out in a rush, the earlier inhibition blown away.

Zelda shook her head as they walked. “I’m sad to say that I don’t really know much more than you do. You’ve spent far more time among Gorons than I have. I only ever met Daruk, and he never talked about the subject with me.”

“Oh.” Link responded, his face falling for a moment before he resumed silently scanning the surroundings for threats.

The path sloped upwards upwards, leading away from the hot springs, between burned-out trees trunks. Blackened husks of long dead Guardians dotted the hillside, half embedded in rock where a sudden flow of lava long ago had caught them. Patches of moss and tough bushes peeked out of crevices here and there, life starting to reclaim the area.

Sensing his disappointment, Zelda continued speaking. “Before meeting him, I researched everything I could about their culture, including reading what I there was on them in the library.” She sighed. “On the topic of their reproduction, there wasn’t much. I found some old writings, some explorer’s journals, but really nothing solid beyond theories and folklore. Maybe some book I never saw contained better information, or maybe I never asked the right person.” Her voice turned sorrowful as she remembered. “So much knowledge was lost during the Calamity.”

“That wasn’t your fault” Link reassured her.

Zelda nodded. “Thank you. I’m glad that you, at least, don’t blame me.” _Perhaps someday I’ll stop blaming myself_ , she thought darkly, before banishing the thought. It was not the time for self-pity.

The path rose further into the hills, winding among massive boulders. Link took a momentary detour, stepping off the road to grab a large orange mushroom growing at the base of a long-dead, half-burned tree. “So, theories and folklore?” he asked as he returned to her side.

Zelda smiled, glad to relate what little she had learned. “The most common bit of folklore I’ve heard, which I wouldn’t even dignify by calling a theory, is that new Gorons are born from the volcano itself, as small rocks or blobs of lava that the adult Gorons find, adopt, and sculpt into children. There are even some who claim that if the new Goron is sculpted without sufficient care, or isn’t sculpted at all, it will instead become a pebblit.”

“That’s absurd. Pebblits are nothing like Gorons.” Link pointed out.

“I did call it folklore. Even if you ignore the part about pebblits, there are a lot of problems with the idea. For one thing, we have historical records showing Gorons living in places other than Death Mountain.”

Link nodded. “Right. Like Greyson and Pelison over in Tarrey Town, although they just moved there.”

Zelda continued, “And we have plenty of evidence of familial lineages in Gorons. The entire reason we’re on this trip, after all, is to see if Yunobo inherited Daruk’s ability to control Vah Rudania.”

As she spoke, Zelda realized that Link’s attention had wandered, drawn by a broken-down Guardian on the side of the road, cleaner and more intact than the earlier burned-out husks. He walked over to it, kicked at one of the broken segmented legs, and then rapped his knuckles on the machine’s casing, making a dull, hollow ringing sound.

Zelda walked up behind him, looking with some fascination at the broken machine, glad for the chance to closely examine a Guardian that wasn’t trying to kill her. Evidently satisfied that it would not activate and attack them, Link climbed up onto the base of the dead machine and gave its head a vigorous shove with both arms. It shifted position with a grinding sound, opening up a gap between the head and the body. He reached inside, rummaging around, feeling for loose parts.

“I think that one’s been picked clean” called a voice from the road.

On the road stood a woman several feet taller than either Link or Zelda. Sharp features, pointed ears, and red hair sweeping upwards to a point only accentuated her height. She wore loose blue and white clothing, decorated with golden swirls, revealing impressive muscles and a large amount of well-tanned skin. On her back was a large backpack, bulging and lumpy, and her wrists, ankles, and ears were adorned with golden jewelry.

"Sav'otta”, said the tall, red-headed woman. “Headed up to Goron City with your vai?” she asked, nodding at Zelda.

“We are.” Link responded. He stepped back towards the road. “Zelda, this is Ramella. She buys gems from the Gorons for jewelry-making in Gerudo City. Ramella, this is my friend, Zelda.”

Zelda, not the Princess. They weren’t announcing her as the legendary princess to the world yet, but hadn’t come up with a convincing false name. When they discussed the idea, Link argued that Zelda was a common enough name that nobody would make the connection.

"Vasaaq, Zelda" the tall Gerudo woman responded, smiling. “You’ll be glad to hear the heat is much less now, the volcano seems to be going dormant. You should be able to make it all the way to the southern mine without protection. Beyond that, you two will have to slather some fireproof elixir on your skin if you don’t want to burn to death.”

“And how has the jewelry business been?” Link said, eyeing the bulging backpack Ramella wore.

Ramella laughed. “Very well, now that the Gorons are working the northern mine again. I have a full load of gems to take back. Although, they were light on sapphires, so if you have any I’ll pay you well for them.”

Link immediately began digging in his seemingly bottomless pockets and pulling out fist-sized blue gems. The two of them proceeded with judging quality and setting prices, while Zelda marveled at Link’s endless proclivity for gathering every potentially valuable item that he came across. _I could probably fund half the kingdom with his pocket change, and he’d give it to me without hesitation_ , she mused to herself.

"Sarqso, little voe.” she said as she handed over a handful of rupees - purple, silver, and gold - to Link. A small fortune that could purchase a house back in Hateno, which Link simply dropped in his pockets and then likely forgot about. “You’ve made this trip even more profitable. Take care of yourselves, I’d hate to lose my best gem supplier.” She turned and headed back southward, on the path leading downhill away from the mountain.

"Sav'orq", Link responded, pronouncing the Gerudo word perfectly, then turned and resumed walking up the steep path. As they did, Zelda saw more signs of life; dragonflies flitting through the air or resting on the few tough plants growing from the volcanic rocks, and lizards barely visible among the rocks as they hunted the insects.

She picked a spray of saffina and tucked it behind an ear as they walked. As they had passed well beyond earshot of Ramella, she resumed the topic of her earlier discussion with Link. “Of course, there’s much less question about how the Gerudo reproduce, despite them also being almost entirely single-gender.”

“Sure. Gerudo women take Hylian husbands when they want kids. I even helped arrange a wedding a while back.” Link replied.

“But nobody believes that Gorons take Hylian wives.” Zelda said.

Link raised an eyebrow. “How would that even work? They’re huge and made of rock, and I don’t think they’re even compatible that way.”

Zelda laughed. “No, I think we can rule out that possibility.”

Link made a somewhat rude gesture, driving one fist into an open hand. “I mean, he’d crush her if they even tried.”

Zelda rolled her eyes at that. “You’ll be relieved to know that as far as I could determine, there has never been a recorded marriage between a Goron and a Hylian. Which says something. There are multiple historical records of marriages between Zora and Hylians, though the Zora race isn’t biologically compatible with ours either. And I’ve even heard rumors of Hylians marrying Rito. But never a Goron.”

As she spoke, Zelda and Link came to a sudden steep slope, where multiple lava flows had deposited great sheets of dark rock covering the original road. Link easily clambered up the rock, then reached down to help Zelda up. Halfway up they passed a sign reading “Death Mountain Marker #2, Goron City ahead” in Goron script, mounted on a metal post hammered into the rock.

At the top of the hill they stepped onto a smooth expanse of cracked rock, where lava had pooled and then solidified. Broken metal crates and barrels and other debris were fused into the surface, as if carried here in a flood of molten rock. Zelda realized that the eruptions must at one point have swept away a camp or caravan, with whatever didn’t burn being brought here.

Link bent down to feel the still-warm surface beneath them. “The last time I came this way, there was a big pool of molten rock right here, and I needed an elixir just to stand where you are. It’s cooled enough for us to get through without being fireproof now.”

“Ramella did say we would be safe up till the southern mine, but we’ll need elixirs from that point on.” Zelda felt the heat radiating from the rock beneath her. She reached out to touch one of the metal crates, before flinching back from the heat.

Link stood, looking ahead down the path. “When we get to Goron City, I’ll have them make a set of Flamebreaker armor fitted for you. You won’t need to use elixirs once you have that.”

“You already have a set for yourself, right?” Zelda asked. “I thought you’d be wearing that for this trip.”

Link shook his head. “Can’t. I only have one set.”

Zelda’s brow furrowed. “I don’t understand. I thought you’d wear your suit, and I’d use the elixirs, unless you wanted me to wear the suit, although it most likely won’t fit me well.”

“It’s because I need to make sure you’re safe.” Link replied to her. Seeing her confusion, he continued speaking, “The Flamebreaker suit resists higher temperatures than the elixirs do. I’d be fine in it while you’re roasting to death. I need to make sure it’s not too hot for you, and the only way to do that is if we’re using the same elixirs, at the same time.”

Link pulled six small bottles full of grey liquid from his pockets, and handed three to her. “These are all brewed to have the exact same potency. You’ll use them at the same time I use mine, and that way I’ll know how much heat you’re feeling, and when it’s wearing off.”

“As you say. I’ll follow your lead on when to use these” she responded.

They walked along the cooled lava flow, using Link’s memory and the map feature on the Sheikah Slate to determine where the road had been before being buried by volcanic eruptions. He helped her across uneven and rippled ground, where the lava had flowed and slumped while cooling. In some areas flat metal slats had been laid down, marking the new path of the road, repair work undertaken now that the eruptions had stopped.

Abruptly, Link gestured at her to stop, and then pointed ahead on the road, where Zelda saw only more broken rock and distorted metal slats. She remained in place, waiting as Link stepped forward, his attention fixed on what appeared to Zelda to be a perfectly ordinary large rock. Link drew the Master Sword from the scabbard on his back, and with that sacred, irreplaceable, Goddess-forged blade of evil’s bane, gently tapped the rock. The rock did not respond. Link placed a foot against the rock and gave it a hard shove. It shifted position slightly, but showed no signs of reacting otherwise. He shrugged, sheathed the sword, and turned back towards Zelda.

“All safe? You’re satisfied that boulder won’t give us any trouble?” she asked, teasingly.

“It looked out of place.” Seeing her amused, skeptical expression, Link elaborated. ‘Do you know how often I’ve had a harmless-looking rock jump up and attack me? It might have been a pebblit, or an octorok, or maybe even a really small lizalfo. You can never be too careful.”

“Wouldn’t it have attacked Ramella, if that was the case?”

Link muttered darkly, looking at the ground. “You’d be surprised how many monsters seem to have it in for me, personally.”

“Link,” Zelda responded softly, placing a hand on his arm. “The Calamity is over. The whole world isn’t trying to kill us anymore. You can relax a little.”

Link did not respond, only staring grimly down the path as they walked onward. Zelda decided to change the subject. “So. We’ve agreed that Gorons aren’t born from the volcano, and certainly don’t take Hylian women as wives. What else does that leave?”

“They have secret Goron women somewhere?” Link guessed.

“And you never found them, despite, as you say, talking to everyone in Goron City?” she responded. “No, if there are Goron women, they’re hidden in plain sight. It’s possible that Gorons have male and female genders just like we do, but with no obvious external differences and a culture that refers to everyone as male regardless.” Zelda continued, speaking in a practiced voice. Link began to visibly relax, though he remained vigilant for threats as they walked. 

“So half of them are female, but they all call each other brother, and appear the same to us?” he responded.

“That is a possibility, though they may also be some form of hermaphrodite, either sequential or simultaneous.” Link glanced back at her, one eyebrow raised. “It means any of them can take either the male or female role, or both, when mating.”

“I’ve never heard of a Goron talk about their husband, or mate, or mention having more than one parent.” Link countered.

Zelda nodded. “Neither have I.” Sweat beaded on her forehead, the air growing noticeably hotter as they proceeded. The ground gently sloped downwards, leading into an enclosed hollow, with inward-leaning rock walls on either side rising to nearly meet overhead. Heat radiated from every surface.

She fanned herself with the Slate as she continued speaking. “For this theory to be true, the Gorons would have to practice no pair-bonding at all, and only place significance on one parent. The entire concept of mating would have essentially no presence in their culture, despite being important to their survival. It is a bit of a stretch, especially as they are such an open people who freely talk about other aspects of their biology. I don’t consider it very likely.”

As they reached the end of the hollow, another slope of recently solidified lava covered the path. A crude ramp had been chipped into the stone, allowing her to climb this one without needing Link’s help. The evening sun struggled through the volcanic haze ahead, shining on their faces as they reached the top of the rise. Ahead, Zelda saw an expanse of flat ground, dotted with outcroppings of rock and a few angular metal buildings, not much more than crude metal archways with roofs. She heard a hammering sound, as of rock being repeatedly smashed with a pick.

With a loud rumble, a child-sized boulder came rolling out from behind a pile of rubble. Zelda noticed the way it curved as it rolled, aiming directly at the two of them. Link evidently noticed the same, drawing his sword and shield and positioning himself between Zelda and the oncoming boulder. _Always ready to protect me, even against suspicious rocks,_ she thought.

The rolling boulder slowed and came to a stop just in front of Link. Chunky arms and stumpy legs unfolded as the rock uncurled into a young Goron. The child, only slightly shorter than Link and easily outweighing him, peered up at them from under the lip of an oversized yellow hard-hat.

“Huh? A Hylian!” the child cried, revealing even white teeth in his remarkably wide mouth. “Two Hylians! Are you sightseeing?” he asked, looking back and forth between Link and Zelda.

“Hiya, Axyl. Where’s your father?” Link asked, as he put his sword away.

The Goron child gestured off in the direction of the hammering sounds. “Over there!” He turned and yelled, “Papa! We got tourists!”

The hammering sounds halted, and Zelda heard heavy footsteps approaching, along with a rough voice grumbling. “You know what to tell them, Axyl. The mountain’s not safe for Hylians. They’ll burn up.” A towering, rotund form came into view, a rocky creature nearly twice Link’s height, carrying an equally large pickaxe over one shoulder. “Tell them to head back the way they came. We got no time to chat with tourists.” He stopped, catching sight of Link, then pointed a single massive finger at him. “Hey! It’s you!” the massive Goron scowled at Link. “I got half a mind to throw you in the lava myself!”

Link looked shocked. “Uh, hi, Dorill? Did I do something wrong?” He looked at Zelda, almost as if he expected her to defend him.

“You sure did!” Dorill stomped over to Link, put his pickaxe on the ground with a heavy thud, and glowered down at him as only an angry walking boulder could. “First, you talked to Greyson, and he and Pelison left to go live far away! Then the mountain calmed down, and everyone tells me you did that too.”

Link looked confused. “You’re ... _mad_ that I stopped the volcano from erupting?”

“Yeah! When they opened the North mine back up, Jengo left to go work it! That’s half my workforce gone now thanks to you. And it’s getting colder here, too. I have to walk halfway back to Goron City to get a decent drink of lava now.”

Zelda stepped in, speaking to the irate Goron. “Have you considered going back to the northern mine yourself?”

Dorill grimaced. “Brother, I wanna work up near the summit, but boss Bludo says I gotta stay here. We did all the work to open up this mine, we gotta make that worth it.” He shook his enormous, rocky head. “How am I going to mine a thousand pieces of ore a day when it’s just me and Bohrin? Boss will cut my pay for sure.”

“Dorill”, Zelda spoke, looking up at the Goron, “Link here and I are on our way to speak to Bludo now. When we do, I will bring your concerns to him, and ask him to send more workers to replace the ones you lost.”

Dorill’s mood instantly changed, his face breaking into a wide grin. “You would do that for me? Thanks, brother! That’s real swell of you.” He gave her a gentle pat on the back, which nearly sent her sprawling. “Some of you tiny Hylians are all right.”

With that, the towering Goron lifted his massive pick back onto his shoulder, headed off to one of the nearby metal structures. Zelda noted that Dorill and Axyl shared the same dark brown rocky skin and piercing blue eyes. “Clearly a familial relationship. Those people who claim they’re born from the mountain and adopted by their fathers would appear to be wrong.” she said quietly to Link.

“Never doubted you there.” Link responded, as he sat on a boulder and motioned for Zelda to do the same. The rock was uncomfortably warm even through her clothing. “I think this is as far as we can get without elixirs.” he continued, wiping sweat from his brow.

Zelda reached into her pocket and pulled out one of the elixir bottles that Link had given her earlier. “Slather it on my skin...” she mused, thinking about what Ramella had advised. “Is there even enough here to cover my entire body?” She glanced around the mining site, realizing that she would need to at least partially disrobe to apply the elixir. There were the nearby metal shelters that offered some privacy, but she didn’t relish the prospect. ”And what about my clothes and hair, do I need to spread it on those?”

“Just drink it.” Link responded.

“What? Drink it?” Zelda turned to look at Link, as he downed the contents of a bottle in a single swig.

“Sure. You can put it on your skin, but it’s a lot faster and less messy to just drink it.” he replied, wiping at his lips.

“That can’t possibly work.” Zelda looked back at the bottle in the palm of her hand. “On your skin, it might at least provide a protective barrier, but how can it do anything from inside of you?”

LInk shrugged. “I don’t know how it works, it just does. It’s like the fireproof-ness spreads out into your body somehow.”

“I find it hard to believe that ... fireproof-ness is something that can spread that way.” Zelda signed, frustrated. “Very well. I will accept your word on this, since you’ve done this before and _obviously_ haven’t burned to death yet. However, should I happen to catch on fire, I am going to be very cross with you.”

Zelda uncorked the small bottle and took an experimental sip. The liquid inside was gritty and ashy, with a sour aftertaste and a faint yet unmistakable whiff of bokoblin. “Ugh! This is _disgusting_ !” She grimaced, eyes scrunched shut and forehead furrowed, and then forced herself to continue drinking, finishing off the elixir. “I think maybe next time I _will_ put it on my skin.” Zelda grabbed her canteen and took a drink of water to cleanse her mouth.

Link shrugged. “I’ve tasted worse.”

Zelda continued swishing the water in her mouth, and then spat it out onto the ground. The water dried almost instantly in the heat. “Oh really? What tastes worse than this?”

“Raw frog, for one thing.”

“Fair point.” She stood up, brushing some of the ever-present dust and ash in the Southern Mine off her clothes. “How do I know if it’s working?” she asked.

“You don’t catch on fire.” Link responded.

Zelda gave him a sour look. “I’d prefer to know _before_ reaching that point.”

“There’s a sort of a feeling you get. You should be able to sense a sort of, I don’t know, solidity, spreading through you.” Link scratched the back of his neck. “It’s hard to describe. But once you learn to notice it, it’ll give you a warning before the fireproof elixir wears off, so you know when to take another one.”

They began walking along the path towards Goron City, the air shimmering with heat ahead of them. “Be careful. This will make you and your clothing fireproof, but that’s it. Stuff in your pockets will be safe, but something held in your hand won’t be protected.” Zelda still didn’t see how that made any sense, but accepted Link’s advice for now. She resolved to do some experimenting later.

Just past the southern mine they crossed a bridge made of crude metal slabs, passing over a river of flowing lava. The heat radiating from below should have burned her skin and scorched her clothes, but she felt only a radiant warmth. She paused for a moment while looking at the brilliantly glowing liquid rock, wondering how close she could safely approach. What would it feel like to stick her fireproof hand entirely into it? She stretched a hand out towards the lava, feeling the heat on her skin.

Link grabbed her outstretched hand, and gently led her off the bridge. “Don’t. You aren’t completely fireproof. Lava and open flame can still hurt you. You can’t rely on your normal sense of temperature to protect you, either, because everything will feel too hot and it’s hard to tell safe from unsafe heat. Keep an eye on me, step where I step and don’t touch what I don’t touch.”

They continued along the canyon, Zelda carefully following in Link’s steps as he skirted around smoking, glowing cracks in the ground. “The most dangerous thing about those elixirs is how they make you think you’re completely fireproof, and then you decide to try wading in lava and discover you aren’t.” he continued.

“Speaking from experience, are we?” Zelda gently teased.

“You’re no one to talk, princess. I just had to stop you from putting your hand in lava.”

The path curved upwards through surroundings which made it clear that Death Mountain very much remained an active volcano, even if less active now. Rivers of flowing lava cascaded down the mountain on either side of the path, producing a constant low rumbling sound. Loose volcanic rock shifted as she climbed the crumbling slope. The heat radiating from every surface would have cooked them both alive in seconds were it not for the continuing protection of the elixirs. 

Remembering her earlier curiosity, Zelda reached behind her ear and plucked out the spray of saffina she had placed there. Once taken away from her head, the plant immediately began to turn brown, wisps of smoke rising from the tips. She dropped the smouldering plant, which burst into flame the moment it hit the ground. The crumbling slope under her feet shifted slightly as she stepped away from the fire. At the sound, Link reached over and tightly grabbed her hand, holding it firmly as they walked. 

For a moment, Zelda felt slightly insulted. She wasn’t a child, and she could certainly climb a simple hill by herself, even one surrounded by rivers of lava. The complaint died on her lips as she saw the look on Link’s face - intense concentration bordering on terror, his eyes locked on the path ahead.

 _He’s terrified that he’ll lose me_ , she thought. After all they had been through, the idea of dying to a simple slip and fall seemed absurd, but the prospect clearly scared Link.

Zelda cleared her throat. “So, as we discussed earlier, we have seen no evidence that Gorons have genders or pair-bond like we do, though they do reproduce. That leaves one other possibility. Parthenogenesis.”

Link glanced back at her. “You’re making that word up.”

“I assure you, I am not.” she replied. At least Link seemed distracted now. “It means being able to reproduce without mating at all. There’s a subspecies of hightail lizard found near Angel Peak, which appears to consist entirely of female individuals.” she continued as they walked.

They reached the crest of the hill, the ground ahead slightly less steep. Zelda saw structures like jagged metal trees on either side of the path, and another trail marker indicating the short distance remaining to Goron City. Link still gripped her hand, but seemed less intense, with the discussion taking his mind off the dangerous surroundings.

“Like the Gerudo?” he asked.

“A little like them, but unlike the Gerudo, the Angel Peak hightail lizards can reproduce without needing males at all. The females simply lay eggs, which hatch into more females. It’s possible that the Goron do similarly, though if you’ve never seen evidence of eggs,” Link shook his head in response to that, “then they probably give birth somehow.”

“But, the Gorons are all male.” Link wondered as they walked. Ahead, the ground was level and the path wide and smooth. They passed under a metal archway, a glowing red stone in the center illuminating the path to Goron City.

“Gender is more complicated than that, Link.” Zelda shook her head, trying to figure out the best way to explain the concept. “They use male pronouns, and revere manliness, but they’re not Hylians, and we shouldn’t expect them to conform to our gender roles.”

Link’s brow furrowed, as he listened to Zelda, who continued talking.

“We have to be careful, and not make assumptions when mapping their cultural concepts to our own. Though the Gorons don’t seem to have their own language as such, they do have their own set of meanings and associations for many of our common words.”

LInk released her hand, as the ground was now even and smooth, with no dangerous lava pools nearby. Up ahead, they saw the entrance to Goron City. Zelda was not quite done yet, however, gesturing as she spoke.

“For example, when a Goron says ‘food’, he’s envisioning a type of rock, and not something you or I would eat. A comfortable temperature to them would roast us alive. Manliness, to a Goron, surely means being big and strong and tough, but might also mean being able to give birth to healthy babies.”

“I’m glad the Blood Brothers didn’t make that part of their trials, then.” Link responded., remembering the multiple tests of strength and endurance they had put him through.

“Even they aren’t going to expect you to give birth on demand, Link.”

“Hey! It’s Master Link! And you brought a little friend this time.” A voice called from ahead, where a truly massive, orange-skinned Goron stood at watch at the entrance to Goron City. Multiple metal arches and bridges stretched between stone columns, lit strangely from below with a flickering orange light due to rivers of lava flowing through the town. As they passed into the city, following some pleasantries with the guard at the entrance, Zelda saw only a few Gorons among the buildings, most of them curled up and resting for the night.

“It’s too late to meet with Bludo tonight, but the armor shop might still be open.” Link said to her as they walked into town. “There’s an inn that’s decent, though I don’t recommend the massage. And tomorrow we can try and find Yunobo.” Link continued speaking as they walked off into the city with a long list of plans for the future.

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, so this was another story idea that popped into my head and wouldn't lest me rest until I wrote it. Was originally planned to be a single conversation, but then somehow bloomed into a 5K+ hike through the mountainside with bonus angst and PTSD-induced hyper-vigilance.


End file.
